In the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) randomized trial, a low-fat diet reduced breast cancer mortality, especially in women with more metabolic syndrome (MetS) components (obesity, high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, and abnormal cholesterol). A recent analysis of WHI findings indicates that MetS and obesity each have different associations with breast cancer subtypes and mortality risk. The findings are published by Wiley online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The analysis ...

The joint research team, led by Dr. Chanwoo Yang and Researcher Seong Ju Park from Korea Institute of Industrial Technology(KITECH), along with Prof. Jin Kon Kim and Dr. Keon-Woo Kim from POSTECH, has successfully developed a compact energy storage device with excellent elasticity. This research was published in the world-renowned journal in the field of electronic engineering, 'npj Flexible Electronics'. Beyond foldable and rollable devices, the era of stretchable IT devices is arriving. For these devices, the development of small, elastic energy storage devices is essential. In this respect, micro supercapacitors ...

Many programs ‘deeply entrenched in school culture’ are harmful to children and can cause potentially lasting damage, psychologists have warned. They say these practices, from abstinence-only sex education to zero tolerance policies, can direct considerable funds away from evidence-based strategies, as well as giving pupils misleading information. In new book Investigating School Psychology, researchers have carried out an exhaustive review of current literature to look at practices that continue to exist with little to no scientific ...

The number of cancer cases and deaths in Canada is expected to increase because of a growing and aging population, but the overall rates of people being diagnosed with and dying from cancer will continue to decline, according to the latest cancer trends research in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.240095. The study is the result of a collaboration between the Canadian Cancer Society, Statistics Canada, and the Public Health Agency of Canada. It provides estimates of the number ...

Prices paid to hospitals during 2022 by employers and private insurers for both inpatient and outpatient services averaged 254% of what Medicare would have paid, with wide variation in prices among states, according to a new RAND report.   Some states (Arkansas, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi) had relative prices under 200% of Medicare, while other states (California, Florida, Georgia, New York, South Carolina, West Virginia, Wisconsin) had relative prices that were above 300% of Medicare.   Even as the number of hospitals and insurance claims analyzed has grown across multiple rounds of the RAND Hospital ...

Pioneering measures to tackle sedentary behaviour among children in China have proved effective, according to new research. The study, led by the University of Bristol, reveals regulations recently introduced by the Chinese government to reduce school children’s sedentary behaviour by restricting online gaming companies catering for this age group, limiting the amount of homework schoolteachers can assign, and curtailing when private tuition businesses can provide lessons, significantly reduced total sedentary time as well as how long they spent on different sedentary activities. The measures were associated with a 13.8% daily sedentary drop overall, ...

New research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Venice, Italy (12-15 May), reveals the anti-inflammatory power of moderate-to-vigorous aerobic exercise in adults living with the low-grade inflammation of obesity, shedding light on its potential to help prevent multiple metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis (clogged arteries). Excessive fat accumulation in adipose tissue (fat cells) leads to chronic low-grade inflammation, characterised by chronically elevated levels of ...

New research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Venice, Italy (12-15 May), suggests that smokers tend to eat less and have less healthy eating habits than non-smokers, which could help explain why smokers often gain weight when they quit. The study, involving over 80,000 UK adults, underscores the importance of providing nutritional and weight management support to smokers, particularly those who are attempting to quit smoking. People who smoke typically have a lower body weight and body mass index (BMI) than their non-smoking counterparts, ...

New research being presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Venice, Italy (12-15 May) suggests that the source of sugar is more important than the amount of sugar when it comes to the development of obesity in children. The study found that the total amount of sugar consumed when very young was not associated with weight at age 10 or 11.  However, children who got a higher proportion of their sugar from unsweetened liquid dairy products (milk and buttermilk) were less likely to go on to live with overweight or obesity. Similarly, getting more sugar from fruit was associated with less weight gain.  However, getting a lot of sugar ...

Lisbon, Portugal – 12 May 2024:  Yoga focused on breathing, meditation, and relaxation is linked with symptom improvement in patients with heart failure, according to research presented today at Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 “Patients who practised yoga on top of taking their medications felt better, were able to do more, and had stronger hearts than those who only took drugs for their heart failure,” said study author Dr. Ajit Singh of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India. “The findings suggest that yoga can be ...

Professors Yiqiang Wu and Caichao Wan, along with their team from Central South University of Forestry and Technology (CSUFT), have pioneered a groundbreaking transparent material derived from natural bamboo. This innovative material features a three-layered flame-retardant barrier, effectively reducing heat release, slowing flame spread, and restraining the emission of combustible volatiles, toxic smoke, and CO. Their findings have been documented in the journal Research. Silica glass, a widely used transparent material in the construction industry, ...

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is one of the most common congenital anomalies worldwide, which brings a heavy health and financial burden to patients. Early CHD screening and treatment can significantly improve children’s prognosis and quality of life. However, inexperienced sonographers often face difficulties in recognizing CHD through transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) images. An auxiliary CHD screening system that allows inexperienced sonographers and general practitioners to perform TTE in a simple and easy-to-use way, thereby improving the CHD screening rate and scope, is urgently needed. An Anhui Medical University, National Center for Children's Health and National Research ...

Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Duke University showed that a genetic variant, present in 3-4% of self-identified Black individuals in the U.S., increases the risk for both heart failure and death and contributes to significant decreases in longevity at the population level A genetic variant carried by 3-4 percent of self-identified Black Americans increases the risk for heart failure and death, contributing to a significant decrease in longevity at the population level, according to a new study led by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, and Duke University School of Medicine. The ...

About The Study: Among self-reported Black individuals, male and female V142I carriers faced similar and substantial risk for heart failure hospitalization, predominantly with reduced ejection fraction, and death, with steep age-dependent penetrance. Delineating the individual contributions of, and complex interplay among, the V142I variant, ancestry, the social construct of race, and biological or social determinants of health to cardiovascular disease merits further investigation.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Scott D. Solomon, M.D., email ssolomon@rics.bwh.harvard.edu. To access the ...

The higher the blood sugar level in pregnant women when first diagnosed with diabetes, the higher the risk of complications around and after birth, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. For every 5mg/L above the diagnosis threshold, the risk of newborns having low blood sugar levels, or a large birth weight, rises by 9% and 6%, accordingly, while mothers have a 31% higher risk of diabetes after birth. The findings suggest that high-risk women with gestational diabetes should be classified further to limit these complications for both ...

Women who enter menopause before the age of 40 are more likely to die young, but may lower their risk with hormone therapy, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. This long-term Finnish study is the largest carried out on the association between premature menopause and mortality, which highlights the importance of regular medical checkups and appropriate hormone therapy use in these women. Most women experience menopause between the ages of 45 and 55. However, about 1% of women go through menopause before the age of 40 years, known as premature menopause or ...

Being asked whether you considered yourself a normal weight, plumper or thinner as a child when attending a doctor’s appointment as an adult might appear like a very strange question to ask, but new research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity in Venice, Italy (12-15 May) suggests that such questions can help identify increased mortality risk in adults living with obesity. The study is by Dr William Johnson, an epidemiology expert based at Loughborough University, UK, and colleagues. Obesity in adulthood ...

Viewers bombarded with 52 minutes of junk food advertising every hour. Young people exposed to influencer and digital game-based marketing consume an additional 37 calories in foods that are high in fat, salt, and sugar after each exposure. Findings underscore urgent need for digital food marketing polices to protect young viewers. Food and drink advertisements on videogame livestreaming platforms (VGLSPs) like Twitch are associated with more positive attitudes towards, and purchases and intake of, unhealthy foods that are high in fat, salt and/or sugar (HFSS) like energy drinks among adolescents aged 18 or younger, according ...

Lisbon, Portugal – 11 May 2024:  Heart failure patients who are vaccinated against COVID-19 have an 82% greater likelihood of living longer than those who are not vaccinated, according to research presented today at Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 Heart Failure is a life-threatening syndrome affecting more than 64 million people worldwide.2 “Patients with heart failure should be vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect their health,” said study author Dr. Kyeong-Hyeon Chun of the National Health Insurance ...

“Sticks and stones may break my bones,” the old adage goes. “But words will never hurt me.”  Tell that to Eugenia Rho, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science, and she will show you extensive data that prove otherwise. Her Society + AI & Language Lab has shown that Police language is an accurate predictor of violent interactions with Black motorists. Broadcast media bias and social media echo chambers have put American democracy at risk. Now, Rho’s ...

A group of scientists who placed instruments on an ice shelf in Antarctica found that ponds of meltwater were causing the ice to flex and fracture. Though scientists had predicted the phenomenon, this is the first time it was observed in the field. The finding raises concerns that, as climate change progresses and more melting occurs, vulnerable ice shelves in Antarctica will collapse—contributing to global sea rise. “Ice shelves are extremely important for the Antarctic Ice Sheet’s overall health as they act to buttress, or hold back, the glacier ice ...

Male rats exposed to moderate and repeated stress during adolescence may have reduced fertility, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. This study sheds light on the harmful effects that early-life stress has on health and could help to uncover future prevention strategies for children and adolescents. While hormone levels fluctuate pathologically — especially during life stages such as puberty — stress can cause too much or too little of a hormone in the bloodstream. This hormonal imbalance negatively impacts puberty and the reproduction ...

Higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol during the third trimester of pregnancy may impede intelligence quotient (IQ) scores in boys aged 7 years old, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. Surprisingly, cortisol levels in the blood are not associated with IQ scores in girls, but higher urine cortisone levels improved their scores. The findings highlight the important role cortisol plays in fetal development in boys and girls independently. Prenatal exposure to cortisol — a steroid hormone that helps the body respond to stress — is needed for fetal development and ...

Fezolinetant reduces the frequency and severity of hot flushes during menopause for 24 weeks, without serious side effects, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. These findings provide further evidence of the benefits of using this non-hormonal preventative drug in women experiencing hot flushes during menopause. Hot flushes and night sweats, also known as vasomotor symptoms (VMS), affect up to 80% of women going through menopause and can severely impact daily life, exercise and sleep. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the most effective treatment, but these drugs are not suitable ...

Measuring the total mass of fat in the arms could potentially predict which women and men over 50 are at risk of spinal fracture, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. The findings may help identify high-risk individuals with a more simple and inexpensive method and influence the design of their exercise plans. Osteoporosis is a common disease among older people, but is also among the most undiagnosed and untreated medical conditions in the world. Many people do not have noticeable symptoms of osteoporosis until they experience an injury or fracture, which most ...